[Verse 1]
All around the water tank
Waiting for a train
A thousand miles away from home
Sleeping in the rain
I walked up to a brakeman
To give him a line of talk
He says, "If you've got money
I'll see that you don't walk"
I haven't got a nickel
Not a penny can I shill
"Get off, get off, you railroad bum"
He slammed the boxcar door

[Refrain]
Oh-de-lay-ee, ay-ee, oh-lay-ee

[Verse 2]
He put me off in Texas
A state I dearly love
The wide open spaces all around me
The moon and stars up above
Nobody seems to want me
Or lend me a helping hand
I'm on my way from Frisco
I'm going back to Dixieland
Though my pocketbook is empty
And my heart is full of pain
I'm a thousand miles away from home
Just waiting for a train
[Refrain]
Oh-de-lay-ee, ay-ee, oh-lay-ee